Salva Cremasco is a washed rind cheese that once was produced in May to use the surplus milk from that time of the year. Dubbed Salva (Italian for "save") because it often saved the economy of many dairies, as this cheese could be sold quickly after 75 days of aging, while the larger wheels of hard cheese would still be several months away from being ready to sell. Today Salva Cremasco is made year-round in the Provinces of Bergamo, Brescia, Cremona, Lecco, Lodi, and Milano.

Salva Cremasco is an aromatic cheese, similar to a drier Taleggio, with a rind that gets increasingly dark as it ages. This pungent cheese is great with a fruit-forward red wine to complement the pungent, salty cheese. It also melts well, working particularly well with equally intense flavors, like prosciutto, coppa, radicchio, Calabrese hot peppers, and arugula.